Father helps us to follow you.
In some ways this is one of the hardest study notes for me to write as we are talking about someone very special who had a unique relationship with God. The main things I can think of that relate to us are abstract symbology, but we'll touch on that later.
God appeared to Moses first of all when he was 80 years old. Moses had spent the first 40 years of his life in Pharaoh's court, then 40 years with Jethro. Often we feel God is sometimes slow to act (at least, I sometimes feel that way), but God always chooses the perfect moment. The time was ripe for the Children of Israel to go back to the promised land and Moses was chosen to lead them. (If you're into history, the wars of that period between Egypt and Assyria had just ended and the land of Palestine was enjoying its first time of peace in 400 years.)
God's first appearance to Moses was in the burning bush. Moses saw a bush that was burning, yet the leaves and branches were not being consumed. (There's a lot of symbology here - the giving of light, the branches being supported by one stem and being protected by the fire, etc) It did it's job; to attract attention - this was something special. The same principle applies to us today.
God had chosen Moses to be the leader. In some ways Moses up-bringing had been perfect. He had experienced leadership in Pharaoh's court and he had experienced leadership in another way; by leading the sheep. In the court everything was done by shouting at servants, by being commanding. Sheep don't work that way. With sheep you have to gain their trust, by helping, nurturing and by being gentle. It's not like shepherding today, when the sheep are in fields and the dogs have only to chase them through a series of controlled gates. Trying to chase sheep in the wilderness without a dog would mean they would scatter to the four winds and you'd never see them again.
Moses made a few excuses why he didn't want to go back to Egypt. One of these was that the Children of Israel wouldn't believe Moses. Whether God knew they wouldn't, and whether it was more to appease Moses if nothing else, he told him to perform two miracles: the rod becoming a snake, and Moses' hand becoming leprous. And by having his brother Aaron to do most of the talking he agreed to go. Moses had been appointed as leader.
The other record of appearing to Moses I want to quickly look at was the way in which God talked to him. For everyone else (except Jesus) God gave his message as dreams or images/visions, but not to Moses. There's a few references to way God spoke to Moses Exodus 33:11 says 'And the LORD spake unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend.'
I think this is because Moses (and Jesus) had the important job of teaching the basics exactly as God wanted them. God's laws and requirements were exact. He didn't want any misunderstandings. Prophesy was for the future, but the laws were for the present. (We'll come back to this in a few weeks time.)
This had a physical effect on Moses; his face shone when he came down Mount Sinai from speaking with God. And again the only other person this happened to was Jesus, when he was transfigured during his talk with Moses and Elijah.
God talked with Moses, but the important point for us that there was someone who was willing to listen.
Can you think of any other examples of how 'burning' was used to attract attention that God was in control?
Why did God speak to Moses directly?
Why did God speak only to Moses and not to all the Children of Israel? (except once)
The Bible records only four people have been taken by God; Enoch, Moses, Elijah and Jesus. It doesn't say that they were all taken to Heaven (it only says that about Elijah and Jesus), but this may account for Moses and Elijah being at the transfiguration. Any ideas??